As known, a scroll compressor comprises:                a closed housing,        a scroll compression unit adapted for compressing refrigerant and including an orbiting scroll and a fixed scroll,        a drive shaft adapted for driving the orbiting scroll in an orbital movement,        a driving unit coupled to the drive shaft and arranged for driving in rotation the drive shaft about a rotation axis, and        guide elements for guiding in rotation the drive shaft, the guide elements comprising at least a lower guide bearing provided on a centering part attached to the closed housing, an intermediate bearing provided on a support frame on which is slidably supported the orbiting scroll, and an upper guide bearing provided on a connecting sleeve projecting from the lower side of the orbiting scroll, the lower, intermediate and upper guide bearings being arranged to respectively guide lower, intermediate and upper portions of the drive shaft.        
Such a configuration of the drive shaft and the guide elements induces a large deflection of the drive shaft notably in the upper portion of the latter due to the mechanical loads supported by the drive shaft coming from the compressed refrigerant and the inertia forces induced by the orbiting movement of the orbiting scroll.
Due to said deflection, the drive shaft cannot be operated at high rotational speed, that is at a rotational speed higher than 9000 rpm. Thus the operating speed range of the scroll compressors of the prior art is limited.